Lawmakers finish the 2025 session with a state budget that covers a massive revenue shortfall. A measure meant to address high health care costs goes to the governor. And school board races will turn partisan under a narrowly-approved bill.
Here’s what you might have missed this week at the Statehouse.
Republican leaders said they started closing the revenue shortfall by making cuts and then turned to a $2 per pack cigarette tax increase to finish closing the gap.
Cuts in HEA 1001 include reducing local public health funding down to $40 million a year — from $150 million this year — and slashing higher education funding by 5 percent.
A House priority bill approved on the session’s final day includes a variety of policies targeted at different areas within the health care industry, including a policy that clarifies Indiana’s current site of service language.
HEA 1003 also prohibits health provider contracts from containing provisions with the intent to limit competition.
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School board candidates will have to choose a label when they file for elections: Republican, Democrat, independent or nonpartisan. Supporters said SEA 287 improves transparency; opponents worried it will inject partisan politics into school board races.
Find all the measures we've covered this legislative session on our 2025 bill tracker .
Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5 .
CLARIFICATION: Language describing SEA 287 has been adjusted to better reflect the bill's language.
